TITLE MUST BE IN ALL CAPS, IN SINGLE SPACE,
IN INVERTED PYRAMID STYLE,
AND CENTERED
A Thesis
Presented to the
Faculty of
California State University, Fullerton
In Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirements for the Degree
Master of (Arts or Science)
in
Proper Degree Name
By
Student Name
Thesis Committee Approval:
Tuffy T. Titan, Department of Xxxxxxxxx, Chair
Suzy Q. Snowflake, Department of Xxxxxxxxx
Joe Bag-O’Donuts, Department of Xxxxxxxxx
Semester, Year
(THESIS TEMPLATE UPDATED 2016-09-20)
ABSTRACT (5 blank single spaced lines from top, 2 blank lines below)
Type or paste your abstract here. An abstract is required for all manuscripts, with a recommended length of about 250 words, or no more than one page, and will be published online and in Thesis Abstracts, a publication of University Microfilms International Publications. UMI prefers an abstract of this length for publication purposes and may shorten longer abstracts themselves. The abstract should include a statement of the problem, procedures, methods, results, and a conclusion—the equivalent of a short statement you might use in response to the question, “What is your thesis all about, anyway?” The abstract should not contain footnotes or references, or include the title and your name as author of the thesis.
The “front matter” page numbers are set at one inch at the center bottom of the page, in lower-case Roman numerals. If you add or delete some pages, the computer will repaginate the file automatically. Please see Chapter 1 for more information about formatting.
Orange and blue text should be deleted from your final version.
TABLE OF CONTENTS (5 blank single spaced lines above, 2 blank lines below)
ABSTRACT i
LIST OF TABLES i
LIST OF FIGURES i
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS i
Chapter
1. TITLE OF CHAPTER (CHAPTER TITLES IN ALL CAPS here and in the text) #
Primary Heading (All Headings in Title Case; Capitalize All Major Words) #
Primary Heading #
Secondary Heading #
Secondary Heading #
2. TITLE (do not allow extended titles to enter the page number column; if titles run on to a second line do NOT indent them) #
Primary Heading #
Secondary Heading #
Secondary Heading (you must have at least two subheadings at any
level; runover lines should be indented three spaces) #
Primary Heading #
Secondary Heading #
Secondary Heading #
3. TITLE OF CHAPTER #
Primary Heading #
Secondary Heading #
Secondary Heading #
Primary Heading #
Secondary Heading #
Secondary Heading #
4. TITLE OF CHAPTER #
Primary Heading #
Primary Heading #
5. TITLE OF CHAPTER #
Primary Heading #
Primary Heading #
6. TITLE OF CHAPTER #
Primary Heading #
Primary Heading #
APPENDICES (if you have more than 1) #
A. TITLE OF APPENDIX A (APPENDICES TITLES IN ALL CAPS) #
B. TITLE OF APPENDIX B #
REFERENCES (or BIBLIOGRAPHY, etc.) #
1. Note that subsequent pages of a Table of Contents begin at the one-inch margin at the top—the same as the body of your thesis.
2. If you have only one appendix, then type APPENDIX rather than APPENDICES. A single appendix is not identified with a letter.
3. For more than one appendix, the pagination for the first appendix is the same as listed for APPENDICES.
4. References and Bibliography are not the same. References list items actually cited in your work. In a Bibliography, you list all of the material consulted in preparing your thesis, whether or not you have actually cited the work.
5. Delete these bulleted points before submission!
LIST OF TABLES (5 blank single spaced lines above, 2 blank lines below)
Table Page
1. Title x
2. Table Titles Should Be in Headline Case with Most Words Capitalized (if title exceeds the length of one line, do not indent subsequent lines. Do make sure that the title words do not extend past the leader dots or enter the page number column. Use spaces within your titles to bump words onto the next line) x
3. Title x
4. Title x
5. Title x
6. Title x
1. Titles listed here should be EXACTLY the same as within the text. Table titles should appear above the table: “Table 1. Title of Table” (note: no period after the title, nothing is in italics).
2. Give every table a brief but clear and explanatory title.
3. Use “Headline” capitalization for tables. Capitalize each word in a table title; do not capitalize words like with/and/the/of/if/by.
4. If titles must exceed the length of one line, do not allow them to go beyond the leader dots or enter the page number column of blank spaces. Use spaces to bump words onto the next line.
5. Additional pages begin at the top one-inch margin and do not require the Table/Page header.
6. Copy and paste the example lines for additional tables; delete unnecessary lines.
7. Replace # with the actual page numbers.
LIST OF FIGURES (5 blank single spaced lines from top, 2 blank lines below)
Figure Page
1. Caption x
2. Figure captions should be in sentence case with only the first word and proper nouns capitalized (if caption exceeds the length of one line, do not indent subsequent lines. Do make sure that the caption words do not extend past the leader dots or enter the page number column. Use spaces within your caption to bump words onto the next line) x
3. The Iao Valley, site of the final battle x
4. Two types of Hawaiian fishhooks: a, barbed hook of tortoise shell; b, trolling hook with pearl shell lure and point of human bone x
5. Caption x
1. Captions listed here should be EXACTLY the same as within the text.
2. Give every figure a brief but clear and explanatory caption. If you have an especially long caption, it is okay to have a brief caption (with a period) then continue with additional description in text. The short caption will appear in the LOF.
3. Use “Sentence” capitalization for figures. Capitalize the first word in a caption and proper nouns.
4. If captions must exceed the length of one line, do not allow them to go beyond the leader dots or enter the page number column of blank spaces. Use spaces to bump words onto the next line.
5. Additional pages begin at the top one-inch margin and do not require the Figure/Page header.
6. Copy and paste the example lines for additional figures; delete unnecessary lines.
7. Replace # with the actual page numbers.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS (5 blank single spaced lines above, 2 blank lines below)
This is an optional section in which you may thank friends, mentors, colleagues, supporters, and/or institutions that supported your research or provided special assistance. If your advisors or committee members offered routine help, you may omit them entirely.
Observe the same formatting guidelines for this section, including margins and double-spacing. It must match the main text.
ii
1
CHAPTER 1 (5 blank single-spaced lines above, 1 below)
THIS IS THE CHAPTER TITLE (2 blank single-spaced lines before text)
All titles in your thesis should be five blank single-spaced lines from the top of the page with two blank single-spaced lines between the title and the beginning of your text. Your text should be double-spaced, with the beginning of each paragraph indented 0.5” from the left. There should be no extra space between paragraphs—this is true for all chapters. If you use this downloadable template, all formatting and pagination will align correctly.
This is a Primary or Level 1 Heading
This is how the first page of your thesis will look, using a chapter name and Turabian-style headings. APA users may use this style in their thesis. If the APA heading style is preferred, observe all guidelines in the APA manual. You do not need to begin each chapter with a primary heading immediately following the chapter title.
If you are using footnotes or endnotes this template will format them properly—note that the MS Word default settings are incorrect.[1] The page numbers and margins are set correctly, as well as the correct ellipsis style . . . and the correct dash style with no spaces between the dash and word.
As you set up your Table of Contents (TOC), click on each word or page number in the TOC and replace it with the proper text from your thesis. The page numbers are aligned by a tab stop so that they will be correct on the right. Using Word’s Split Screen feature allows for the user to see both the TOC and body text at the same time.
This is a Secondary Heading or a Sub-Heading or Level 2 Heading
A secondary heading is a subsection of a primary heading. All headings should be worded in the Table of Contents the same as in the text. The text starts in the line below the secondary heading—one double space—and is indented. APA users may use the bolded style of heading as described in the APA Manual. There is no period or other punctuation after secondary headings. If secondary headings are used, there should be at least two per primary heading section.
This is a tertiary heading. This heading is a subsection of a secondary heading. Both Secondary and Tertiary subheadings relate generally to the Primary Heading, but the Tertiary Heading does not need to be included in the TOC. Refer to the Turabian Manual for Writers or the Chicago Manual of Style for further heading levels and appropriate usage. This heading uses sentence case, not headline case.
CHAPTER 2 (5 blank single-spaced lines above, 1 below)
THIS IS THE CHAPTER TITLE (2 blank single-spaced lines before text)
Paste your text here. This is how the first page of your second chapter may look. Each chapter should be five single-space lines down from the top (“CHAPTER #” will be on the 6th line). Superscript text is not appropriate for the document so if you include dates or iterations of methods, be sure to remove the superscript from “th,” “nd,” and “rd.”
This is a Primary Heading
Primary headings are centered and underlined and use Headline case. APA Level 1 headings are use bold instead of underline. You do not need to begin each chapter with a primary heading immediately following the chapter title.
This is a Secondary Heading or a Sub-Heading
APA users may use the bolded style of heading as described in the APA Manual. There is no period or other punctuation after secondary headings. If secondary headings are used, there should be at least two per primary heading section.
This is a tertiary heading. This heading is a subsection of a secondary heading. Both Secondary and Tertiary subheadings relate generally to the Primary Heading, but the Tertiary Heading does not need to be included in the TOC. Refer to the Turabian Manual for Writers or the Chicago Manual of Style for further heading levels and appropriate usage. This heading uses sentence case, not headline case.
CHAPTER 3 (5 blank single spaced lines above, 1 below)
THIS IS THE CHAPTER TITLE (2 blank single spaced lines before text)
Delete all text within this chapter and paste in your own. Table and figure placement and referencing in the text are among the most difficult of all formatting problems. Consult your appropriate style manual for guidelines, since the thesis manual is not conclusive. Nevertheless, the general guidelines that follow should assist you with less complicated graphics.
Tables and Figures
Insert your table or figure after you have referenced it within the text (see Table 1). Notice that the table title begins on the third single-spaced line after the text, and resumes on the third single-spaced line after the table. Such placement sets off the table from the text, creating an easy visual transition for the reader.
Table 1. Repayment Schedule
Amount of Loan / Interest Paid / Total Principal and Interest Paid$20,000 / $29,437.20 / $245.31
$40,000 / $58,873.20 / $490.61
$60,000 / $117,746.40 / $981.22
Regardless of table style, the general requirements are the same. No italics are used with table titles. No period is used after the table title. Stub entries are always aligned flush left, with column heads centered above their corresponding data. All decimals must align. There are also rules for notes, explanations, capitalization, and runover lines, to name but a few. All tables should be referred to in the text, numbered consecutively (with Arabic numerals), and placed as close as possible to the original text reference. Refer to tables and figures by their number; for example, as shown in Table 2, the response time among firefighters and police were substantially different (see Table 3). By informing the reader that a table or figure will be following, often referred to as a “callout,” the reader knows to look for one. Be sure to include all descriptions found in the table or figure in your text. Do not use relative terms such as below or above to callout your table or figure. Placing tables and figures is hard work (see Figure 1). Figure captions use italics for the figure number. Captions include a period at the end.
Figure 1. Thesis writing is hard work.
Table titles are placed one space above the table, and figure captions are placed one space beneath the figure. Fonts for titles and data may be no smaller than 10-pt. Tables and figures larger than a half a page may stand alone; otherwise, add text to fill the page.